Has it Stuck?: A Personal Goals Reflection

With the New Year quickly approaching, most individuals are spending their last month reflecting on the past year and either dwelling on those meaningful experiences or regretting making a New Year’s Resolution (like 50% of Americans). Regardless of which category you fit in, this month is the perfect time to look back and reflect on either the successes or defeats of the year.

As I began to think and reflect on my personal life I started to generate a list of goals I was unable to achieve this year. However, through my reflection I soon realized that achieving a goal is a process. Some goals can be obtained rather quickly, while others may take more time and patience.

During the kick off activity each advisor was given the chance to identify three personal goals they would hope to accomplish for the current school year (2017-2018). This activity focused on establishing certain goals within the areas of self-care, work/life balance, helping others, professional development, and relationship building.

In this blog post we are featuring two academic advisors who kindly answered the questions below:

Q: How were you able to implement/work on your personal goals that you identified earlier this semester? Additionally, how would you bring this into the New Year?

Chantelle Tuffigo, English Advisor

“Most of the goals I set at kickoff were related to settling in to my new job in a new city. Since arriving in Tallahassee this summer, I have grown in so many ways. I had so much to learn when I first started as an advisor and I’m proud of all I have achieved professionally in such a short time. I have gone through extra training, learned about other offices on campus, and attended campus events. With this being my first “real” job, I had also set a firm goal to maintain a work/life balance. I managed my time wisely so that when it’s the end of the day, I was able to go home without being mentally stuck on all the things I need to get done. I even used my well-earned vacation time to take a long weekend with some new friends! I know I could just put a check mark next to most of my goals and say, “Ok, done!” but learning never stops. There is always room for improvement and I plan to keep growing in 2018.”

D’Evelyn Wymore, Exploratory Advisor

“I achieved all my professional development goals and none of my self-care goals. My self-care goals to meditate and reflect felt more like burdens, created based on what others have recommended as self-care activities. Meanwhile, my professional goals to become a GGSS OPA or present nationally were new and exciting. For the spring, I am rewriting my self-care goals to be less “relaxing” and more invigorating! I want to be as eager to self-care as I am to professionally grow.”

Overall, setting goals for yourself is a great way to fuel your ambition and propel you forward. Goal setting is all about creating a plan and in turn holding yourself accountable.

I leave you all with a brilliant quote that spoke volumes to my life.

“The trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down the field and never score.” – Bill Copeland

 

About the Writer:

Pauline Muturi is a CARE advisor with Advising First and has been in the position since August 2017. She is currently working on a Master’s Degree in Public Health and has been in Tallahassee for five years. One of her aspirations for this coming year is to continue making strides on getting her researched published.